Such a relief...

Another week bites the dust and my countdown is fast approaching the one month mark - only 4 days left and I’ll be ONE MONTH from my due date!!!! OH MY! 

Here’s a run-down of my week... 

It started out on Sunday with a hangout in Guelph with my lovely best friends who I don’t get to see often enough at all! We lunched at Atmosphere Cafe (so so good - definitely worth a visit it you haven't been before!) and caught up on girly talk then did a little bit of shopping. A marvelous start to the week! 

On Monday, I had my 4th ultrasound, which was mainly to check on whether the partial placental abruption previously discovered had improved, stayed the same or worsened. Of course, the ultrasound tech was unable to tell me anything, since there are rules now about how much diagnostic info they can divulge, so I had to wait until my OB appointment on Wednesday to hear. I did get to see the little man’s chubby face though, check it out! I think he looks like my brother :)

On Tuesday, I supply taught for a friend of mine who was sick, in her grade 2 class. There were some crazy boys in that class - so much energy! Teaching really makes me think a lot about the kind of personality our little guy will have. Will he be laid back and more introverted like his dad, or a weirdo hyper child, like I was? I hope he’s a good balance of both! 

On Wednesday, I had my 34 week OB appointment, which I was EXTREMELY anxious about, since I would be getting my ultrasound results. Turns out, my month of worry was for nothing!!! She told me the previous placental abruption was not seen on my latest ultrasound! HOORAY! It was such a relief to hear that my pregnancy is completely normal and healthy and on track. First it was the low-lying placenta found at 20 weeks, then the partial placental abruption found at 30 weeks, now there’s is NOTHING wrong! I can just wait for natural labour to begin and if everything goes as planned, deliver vaginally (LOL that reminds me of a lovely quote this week - “Dev, I really want you to delivery vaginally” - ha ha ha, this statement came out of my friend Chantal’s mouth last weekend, and if you know her, you’ll understand how funny it must have been to hear her say!). Anyyyyyyways, another Biophysical Profile assessment was done, and little man scored 8/8 again - rockstar! He was also estimated to weigh 5lb 2oz, which is awesome and right on track! He’s still head down and “presenting”, which is good - don’t flip little one! 

I taught kindergarten on Thursday which is always completely exhausting, but this was such a good class and they were really “mature” for 4 and 5 year olds! I also got all our newborn and 0-3 month clothes washed, as well as blankets, receiving blankets, bedding, towels and washcloths! All clean and neatly put away in his cute little room! OH, and here’s a “sneak peek” of his nursery - once the curtains and valance are done, I’ll post photos of the entire room! 

Yesterday (Friday), was Dan’s “Badge Ceremony” which is the official swearing in of the new police recruits in our region. There were 15 of them who received their badges yesterday, after a year long recruitment process, followed by 3 months of Police College and additional training at Regional Headquarters. I’m so proud of my husband for working so hard, making sacrifices, and for truly finding his passion! He’ll start “on the road” in a week and a half with a coach officer who will be training him for the next few months, then he’ll be on his own... you know, arresting bad guys and saving the world! LOL. 

Today, I cleaned the house since we’re having friends over for dinner and everyone knows that’s the only time my house gets cleaned (...don’t tell me I’m the only one!?!) After dinner, we’re all going to a Christmas concert at Dan’s parents church. We go every year and it’s always an amazing show! There’s a full orchestra and choir and it really gets me in the Christmas spirit! 

Here’s this evenings outfit - my ‘Outfit of the Week’ for week 35! (Sorry the photos are so awful... we’re running behind schedule and our guests will be here any minute!)

Dress: Seraphine Maternity

Purse: Jessica Simpson (Winners)

Boots: Aldo

Scarf: No idea... the Bay?

That’s all, until next week! Enjoy your weekend! 

Scary stuff...

Last Wednesday, I had an ultrasound to check on the position of the placenta. On Thursday, I had my 30 week doctors appointment, to get the results. I was so relieved when my OB told me my placenta had moved up and away from the cervical opening!  After getting all excited, though, she proceeded to tell me I have an “Anechoic avascular area (4.9 x 2.0 x 5.1cm) along the inferior placental edge, which may be an area of focal abruption". Ok, so she didn’t actually say that, but that’s what the report says!

Here’s what it means in English for us “lay” people...

There’s an area (4.9 x 2.0 x 5.1cm) with no blood vessels/circulation, along the edge of the placenta. The placenta has partially separated from the uterine wall.

Sounds bad, right?! 

Well, I STUPIDLY got home and started googling away and I found out that “placental abruption”, as its called, happens because of trauma to the abdomen, smoking, cocaine use, blood clotting disorders, diabetes, high-blood pressure, being of “advanced maternal age”, or having a large number of past deliveries. Do I check any of these boxes? NOOOO! 

I also haven’t had ANY symptoms that would normally be markers of a placental abruption, so I'm taking that as a good sign. My OB told me not to worry, that often times these things can heal themselves. As a precaution, she’s scheduled another ultrasound at 34 weeks (so in about 2 weeks from now). She told me I need to report any cramping, abdominal pain or bleeding to her immediately, or go to Emerg (which I would anyways!). Placental abruption happens in about 1% of pregnancies, and as long as it doesn’t become severe, shouldn’t cause any harm to the baby or myself. (I really don’t want to think/type/talk about what would happen if it DOES become severe, so I’ll leave it at that). 

TIME FOR THE GOOD NEWS! My “condition” doesn’t seem to be effecting the little man’s growth or well-being in any way. He measured perfectly in all his percentiles (between 40 and 65 percent), and scored an 8/8 on his Biophysical Profile, during the ultrasound. That means his posture and muscle tone are great, he showed 3 or more distinct movements within 30 minutes (not surprised at all on that one!), he showed off his “practice breathing” for at least 30 seconds (it was so cute seeing him open and close his mouth), and there is the right amount of amniotic fluid surrounding him. Hooray! The ultrasound also put his weight estimate at 3lb 6oz for 30 weeks - right where it should be (and his huge head is already 12” in circumference!) My OB said he’ll put on about 1/2 a pound a week from now until 37 weeks, after which his gain will slow down a bit until he’s born. That means by 37 weeks, he should weigh almost 7 lbs). 

Check out my teeth!

Anyways, we need to continue with the “Go Placenta Go” cheers, and obviously thoughts and prayers are always appreciated. The placental abruption is pretty worrisome for me (and I ALWAYS worry more than I should), but I’m taking good care of myself and trying to “take ‘er easy”. Hopefully, it will heal itself, and the remainder of my pregnancy will be trouble-free! 

In other news, this past weekend, one of my best friends, Jacqueline, took maternity photos of Dan and I! (... there I go again with the excessive comma use, somebody help me!). We were lucky enough to have BEAUTIFUL weather, and we had so much fun getting our photos done together (The first time since our wedding nearly 3 years ago!) I hope to have a few to post within the next few days, which means Dan will finally be making his long-awaited (lol maybe not!?) blog appearance! 

I think that’s all for now. Hope everyone is having a great week :) 

A 'Smorgasbord' update!

It's been a while! I've been super busy this past month with a course I'm taking for teaching, various photographic endeavors, and a cottage get-away, I just haven't found the time to post! Well fear not, dear friends, I'll be posting WEEKLY from now on!

I'll be 18 weeks pregnant on Sunday, which I just can't believe. Where did the last 4.5 months go?! We're almost half way done! I've got quite a few random updates for this post, so here we go...

First off, we bought our first "baby items" last week - a crib and change table for the nursery! They're due to arrive at the end of August, and I cant wait to set them up in the room and start planning/decorating the room!

That leads me to my next update... I had my 4 month pre-natal appointment last Friday and we got the requisition to book the comprehensive 2nd trimester ultrasound which typically happens between 18 and 20 weeks. I was hoping I could book it asap and get in during my 18th week but this particular clinic prefers to do it at 20 weeks since its more detailed and the sonographer is able to see more - so another 2 weeks to wait! We are both very IMpatiently waiting to find out the gender of this baby! I think it will make things that much more real since right now, it's still sometimes hard for me to believe I've got a life growing inside me! In addition to finding out the sex, though, the scan actually checks for some very important things. The sonographer will check that the baby is developing properly, and look at the position of the placenta in my uterus. The baby's organs, hands, feet, face, bones, etc will also be checked.

And what's new with me? This past month I've felt the most 'normal' I have so far. My nausea and morning sickness has subsided (I'm still taking 1 Diclectin before bed which helps me in the mornings) and as long as eat every couple of hours, I feel great! I'm hoping that by 20 weeks or so I wont have to take the Diclectin any longer, but I've also heard some women end up needing it for the entire pregnancy. I figure taking 1 per day is better than NOT taking it at all and not being able to keep down a single morsel of food.

I'm still not looking very pregnant, although I've gained 13 pounds already! I think my body needed the extra weight in the beginning since I packed on 10 pounds in the first three months without eating any differently. I'm actually supposed to gain 1-2 pounds per week until the end of the pregnancy but I've only gained 3lbs in the last 6 weeks. My doctor said my gain is on the low end, but she's not worried since some natually thin women just cant gain as easily as others. And believe me, I'm definitely eating! I have a feeling as the end draws closer and the baby starts to fatten up, I'll pack on a bunch of weight during the last month!

Anyways, I think thats about all for updates this week! I'm without my camera at the moment, so I'll post a bump photo in the next few days - I promise!